Universally Challenged
by Pyjamas
Summary: 5. Koushiro and Mimi have trouble resolving their differences. :Collection of drabbles:
1. Woo Hoo

**Title: **Woo Hoo  
**Collective disclaimer:** I don't own Digimon.  
**Pairing: **Yamashiro  
**Based on: **The 5678s – Woo Hoo  
**Notes: **Well, here we go again. Due to my inexcusably slow progress in all my fanfiction writing I was going to wait until I'd written a few more of these to start posting, but I thought I'd do it anyway. A brief introduction: a while ago now, Rave The Rich and I wrote a drabble for each Adventure pairing (well, he did _all_ the pairings, not just the adventure ones). Then, more recently, he issued a challenge for others to write drabbles of their own, and I thought, 'what the hell? I'll do it all over again.' That means 66 more drabbles coming up from me! One difference though; last time, I had random prompts for drabbles. This time, I'm having a song randomly selected from My Music folder and I'll base the drabble around the feelings that song inspires in me at the time. Pairings are also randomly selected. So, without further ado, let The Rave Challenge commence. Enjoy.

* * *

Watching Yamato prance about on that stage wearing clothes shredded to such extremes that _nothing_ was left to the imagination had Koushiro squirming in his seat. It was bad enough when they were in private; at least there was no one else there who might notice his discomfort, aside from the obvious. But at the shows that Yamato insisted he came to, he was surrounded by people. Not that he was very convinced that any of them would be paying any attention to _him,_ a nerdy, awkward teenager in the crowd, not when they had someone as… well, _stunning_ as Yamato to focus on.

And 'stunning' really didn't do him justice anyway. The aforementioned shredded stage clothes were black, serving to draw more attention to his pale complexion. His eyes were sparkling under the bright lighting, his long fingers clasped tightly around the microphone he was swinging back and forth as he sang… those fingers… Koushiro's mind briefly wandered to other things they could be wrapped around. He managed, however, to catch himself before that thought got too out of hand (pardon the pun), although even that didn't help the blush that stained his cheeks.

He told himself it could be easily blamed, if asked, on the heat in the overcrowded venue.

He fidgeted more, half listening to the band and half wondering how long it would be before he could get out of there. Gigs were definitely not his scene. People, mostly girls, jumped around him wearing next to nothing, screaming the most bizarre propositions to members of the band, a couple even going so far as to throw their underwear on the stage. It was so deafeningly loud that he thought his ears would be ringing for at least a week and he was starting to have difficulty seeing with the constantly changing lights. Besides, watching Yamato like that, so free and promiscuous, was making him incredibly uncomfortable in the trouser department.

When Yamato met his gaze, his eyes dancing with excitement and the promise of _later_, Koushiro found he couldn't stay a moment longer. He'd have to wait back at the apartment if he was going to last more than a few minutes when 'later' finally came.


	2. Stars and Stripes

**Title: **Stars and Stripes  
**Pairing: **Jyoukeru  
**Based on: **Anti-flag – Stars and Stripes  
**Notes: **This one was tricky, but I got there in the end. I hope it's all right. Really; you try writing something vaguely couple-y to this song. It's a nightmare.

* * *

There are few things that can work Takeru up so badly that he becomes a human-shaped container for pent-up energy that desperately wants to be expressed. One of these things is the power of darkness. Ever since coming so close to losing Patamon all those years ago, even just mentioning the power of darkness is enough to send him flying off the handle, lashing out at anyone unlucky enough to be within hearing distance of him. He's not a violent or unreasonable person by nature; he just can't help it. That's how he gets when he feels passionate about something.

Jyou thought that nothing could ever rile Takeru up quite as much as this. But then they visited Mimi in America one year, and he found that his younger partner was simply full of surprises. Quite frightening surprises, at that; although, he managed to keep his cool in public. A raised eyebrow was the only indication Jyou and Mimi received that Takeru thought something was seriously off with the portion sizes in one of the restaurants they visited, and only when they'd been in the States for a good week did he mention being reminded of someone being caught in a pool drain when he saw the amount of plastic surgery people seemed to have. 

Personally, Jyou found New York interesting, even if he couldn't cope very well with the endless crowds and constant noise; and he found it difficult to understand why Takeru had such a problem with it all. He was not, however, going to complain about it, as Takeru's preferred method of releasing all his excess vigour was through a rather pleasurable form of physical activity. And that's how he still is. One mention of or reference to the United States, and Takeru will be in Jyou's pants and clawing at his back as if he hasn't had sex for months. 

Jyou certainly doesn't protest. In fact, he thinks he might even contact Mimi and arrange another visit.


	3. Then I Run

**Title:** Then I Run  
**Pairing:** Mimari  
**Based on:** Mew – Then I Run  
**Notes:** A bit odd, this one, but I still like it. A great band, a nice song and a bit of a surreal feel to the drabble. Enjoy.

* * *

Mimi's dreams have always been vivid and intense. Her basic senses are heightened, and others are awakened from where they lie dormant during the daylight hours. Feelings and emotions become real, tangible things. Sights mingle with sounds, smells merge with tastes and touches, everything blends into a single entity with a clarity that simply does not exist when the conscious mind is working.

As she sleeps now, covers kicked away and tangled around her ankles, a dull glow from a streetlight outside illuminating the faded pink dye in her hair, she can hear Hikari standing beside her. The stars are out and the sun is shining with an impossible brilliance. The air around them clears although Mimi can still smell the fog, and Hikari isn't there.

She stirs in her sleep, her brow furrowing slightly and her head turning in the direction of the window.

Then she can taste Hikari smiling, and she knows she's there. She just needs to look. So she does, the clouds parting before her without hesitation and water changing route to grant her safe passage. The taste is stronger now, and the sound of Hikari's innocence drives her forward. Her pace picks up when she feels laughter, pure as snow, and then she is running, running towards the sound and the scent and the happiness.

Hikari is there; she has to be there. Mimi's toes curl around the thin bed sheet and her next breath is a gasp.

Now Hikari is nowhere, and Mimi is left with the ring of a smile in her ears and the taste of laughter lingering on her lips. She cannot see her, and can no longer sense her. The almost peaceful tension from before is replaced with a nauseating fear, so instead of stopping she runs faster. She shifts more violently this time but still does not awaken; there remains a chance that she'll find her. And no matter how frighteningly small the chance, it's better than the reality of opening her eyes to see nothing but the cold and empty space beside her.


	4. The Remedy

**Title:** The Remedy  
**Pairing:** Jyouyako  
**Based on:** Abandoned Pools – The Remedy  
**Notes: **I like this one too. It ought to go without saying that the 'she' in this is Miyako, hence the pairing. Basing drabbles on songs is really very interesting. A quick (but rather important) note: I've lost my notebook, which is disastrous because it has my pairings list in it to ensure that they're chosen randomly. Until I find a way around this problem, there will be no drabble updates; rest assured that I will find a solution if it kills me.

* * *

Jyou watches her. She draws him in and she knows it; that's what makes the pain that little bit sharper. She'll flirt and she'll flaunt herself with all the subtlety of a brick through a window, all the while a cold glaze over her eyes telling Jyou that he can never touch her.

This isn't what makes him angry. What makes him angry is that others _can_ touch her, and he is subjected to an unobstructed view of it almost every day. Sometimes he'll see her clasped in an intimate hug with Ken, and she'll purposefully catch his eye while tightening her arms. Other times her feet will be tangled with Daisuke's, or Koushiro's fingers will be absently sifting through her hair.

A part of him despises her for taunting him so openly. But he can't stop wanting her, can't stop watching her, and he knows his pain is as much _his_ fault as it is hers.

He threw himself into his studies in an attempt to get over her, tried to develop an interest in other girls; he even asked Yamato to set him up with someone, which he did. And she was a nice girl, pretty and smart, but she didn't even come close to assuaging his craving for his tormentor. So he went back for more, clinging desperately to that thin scrap of hope that had over the years become both his best friend and his worst enemy.

Because he knows that she could make him happy. But he also knows that she won't.


	5. Eraser

**Title:** Eraser  
**Pairing:** Koumi  
**Based on:** Smile Empty Soul - Eraser  
**Notes:** I decided to write a new list, so I'm back on track now. I wish a happy song would get chosen; I like writing happy things better than sad things.

* * *

Mimi goes to the clubs and the parties alone because Koushiro's always too busy with his computer. She can't remember the last time they had a conversation that didn't end with her shouting and him silently and calmly retreating to his study. The only sounds she can hear throughout the day are the steady tapping of fingers on a keyboard and the frequent clicking of a mouse where there should be laughter and interaction. She doesn't even bother to slam the door when she gets sick of it and leaves anymore.

She thought he was the one.

_Am I expecting too much?_

Koushiro spends all his time online because every second spent with Mimi is a battle he'd rather not fight. He used to try and calm her, to make her feel better, when she was angry with him; he has long since stopped trying as nothing seems to have an effect. He's tired of protesting against her nagging, of the struggle with her constant anger, of the impossibility of doing right by her. He hates that it has come to this, but he hates the stress of it more.

He thought he loved her.

_What am I doing wrong?_

It had been so wonderful in the beginning; they had been so happy. Neither knows how they have arrived where they are, standing on opposite sides of a closed door, taking deep inhalations between erratic breaths, stinging words and painful silences still hanging in the air and ringing in their ears. They don't want to fight, but they've run out of other options.

_How do we fix this?_


End file.
